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Antique dealer auctions Em’s coat for NHS funds

A COAT worn by actor Emma Thompson is one of the highlights of
an antique dealer’s online sale in support of the NHS.

Phil Mires is aiming to raise at least £1,000 – inspired by his mum, a health care assistant working with coronavirus patients at St Peter’s Hospital.

Phil Mires is raising money for the NHS through an online auction

The 25-year-old Chertsey-based dealer has selected 75 lots
from his own special stock to sell via his website. Items on offer include
contemporary art, decorative ceramics, collector’s toys and memorabilia.

“Mum works at St Peter’s and is being redeployed to help out with the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said. “She is incredibly anxious and restless about what is going on and it’s not just the challenges at the hospital itself she has to contend with.

The coat worn by Dame Emma Thompson when she received her OBE

“She is also a carer for my nan, a widow in her late 80s who
suffers from dementia and has other underlying health issues. She is at the
stage where she can no longer carry out basic tasks for herself. It is all very
upsetting.”

He said that although he and his mum are part of a large
family, including another key worker, they could do little to help with his
grandmother’s care because of the lockdown.

“But at least I can run an online charity auction to raise
money for the NHS,” added Phil, who built up PM Antiques & Collectables
into a £350,000 online business in just five years after quitting a minimum
wage, zero hours contract job.

The bespoke dark grey woollen coat for sale was worn by Dame Emma when she accompanied her mother, actor Phyllida Law, to Buckingham Palace to be made an OBE by the Queen.

The other lots include Lapping Waves III, a coastal landscape
oil painting by Enrique Martinez; a Hohner L’Organola piano accordion with
fitted case; Ever Hopeful, a limited-edition cold cast porcelain sculpture by
April Shepherd; and a limited edition print of Mountain in the Clouds by Jimi
Hendrix.

The auction is open now and ends on Sunday 3 May, at www.pm-antiques.co.uk.